AUBURN HILLS — The Pistons Brandon Knight rebounded nicely from what was one of the worst games of his career.

In Detroit’s loss to the New York Knicks in London, Knight was held to one point, one assist, one rebound and went 0 for 4 from the field in 18 minutes.

Knight didn’t hang his head and responded Sunday night with 15 points, six rebounds and five assists in the Pistons victory over the Boston Celtics.

“You are going to have some tough games,” Knight said. “I’m not worried about that. Every player doesn’t play well every game. Just continue to play the same way, have the same mentality. Making sure my confidence stays the same, which it always will because I work hard. I just wanted to come out, set the tone defensively, make sure I play at the defensive end.”

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Knight also played well defensively Sunday against All-Star point guard Rajon Rondo. Rondo finished with 15 assists, but had just eight points on 4 for 16 shooting and nine turnovers.

“Brandon’s defense was good,” Tayshaun Prince said. “Then when Rondo picked up the early fouls, (Knight) kept being aggressive. Brandon was a key for us getting off to a good start early. I don’t mean that by making shots and having a big time dunk, but his energy. ... Brandon picked his energy up and got us off to a great start.”

“Brandon had phenomenal energy,” Frank said. “Brandon had some very good transition attacks, a good advance pass early, obviously he had that strong finish at the rim. At times he got a little bit sped up, in terms of with the turnovers, but his heart was in the right place, very good passion with it.”

The Pistons don’t need Knight to be a premium scorer, but it’s clear they need his offense.

Including the Knicks’ loss in London, Knight has been held to less than five points, five times this season and the Pistons are 0-5 in those games.

On the season, Knight is averaging 15.7 points in wins and 12.6 points in losses.

The 21-year-old Knight has been inconsistent in his first full NBA season, but regardless if his shot is falling or not, Knight said he’s going to play with confidence.

“It’s just how I play,” Knight said. “When you work hard, you can have confidence. Whenever I’m on the court, whether I’m playing well or not playing well, I’m going to have confidence in my game.”

The Pistons (15-25) will look to win two in a row when they host Orlando Tuesday.

The Magic (14-26) won both meetings with the Pistons earlier this season.

Orlando rallied from a 13-point second half deficit to defeat Detroit at The Palace on Nov. 16 and then embarrassed the Pistons 90-74 in Orlando on Nov. 21.

Detroit shot just 32.9 percent from the field in the loss at Orlando.

Dave Pemberton covers the Pistons for The Oakland Press. Email him at dave.pemberton@oakpress.com and follow him on Twitter @drpemberton.